Entering the Corridor

Video Transcription

We’re going to jump ahead because we’re going to say that you are going to do that work, and you’re going to figure out what that is that you want.

The Story of the Attorney

I had another example. I’ll take a little side step here. An attorney that was a client of mine had cancer. She never wanted to be an attorney. Her father wanted her to be an attorney. She was his son because he didn’t have one, and she was fulfilling his desires. That started a problem for her because she wanted to be an artist. Here she is, in this kind of rough world. Being an attorney is so far away from the world of artistry that it was causing so much internal conflict in her. Did that cause cancer? Is that what I’m saying? No, but I can say that her cells were not happy, her soul was not happy, so probably anything that she did healthy for herself was just like on a treadmill … On that hamster wheel, is what I say. You have to get off the hamster wheel somehow. Finally she did. But she found a compromise. You know the end of that story. She got better, she’s healthy to this day, she’s doing what makes her happy, her cells sing, and it really made a difference. It probably helped with her choices– so many choices that attributed to a situation like cancer.

There is no Rewind Button

So now you’re going to look at yourself and you’re going to do that. Now you find the answer and you say, “Gosh, I want to be an artist, but I am afraid.” Don’t be alone. You’re not alone. Everybody’s afraid to go into the corridor. Everybody is comfortable with this room, or this room, but nobody wants to be in the hallway. But you have to. In order to go from this room to this room you have to go through the corridor. It’s just transition and you just have to be willing to accept that you’re going to go down there. And you are not going to stay in the hall. You’re not going to live in the hall. You’re going to get to that other room, and that other room is your passion of what you were talking about doing.

Find Your Passion

Discover what drives you: passion, drive, motivation, or zeal. Change your life to pursue your passions. Your work should be your passion.

Remember back when I was telling I was a VP at Wells Fargo Bank, married, two kids … To leave the bank was a big deal, but I did, and went to acupuncture school. That was a big decrease in income, but when you want to do something you just cut back a little bit. You can change things, if that’s really what you want to do. So I did. I cut back, went to acupuncture school, graduated, was able to open up my own place … A lot of my clients from the school, when you do a clinic/internship, came with me so I was able to start off that way. You guys get the drift, though. This was not VP Wells Fargo Bank income. But I was so happy.

During an interview when I was getting acupuncture from another acupuncturist, she was asking me (I’ll tell you some personal history), “Do you have a bleeding gums?” I did. “Do you have heavy periods and clots and that kind of thing?” Oh yeah. I did. And I realized as she went through this laundry list of ailments that I accepted, that I thought was normal, … I realized they were not normal. That was all stress. That was all my cells not being happy and not singing.

Then they all just fell away. I didn’t do purposely do something to change those things. My internal body changed, and everything got to be more harmonious inside, and working in balance inside me. So that’s why they say stress affects you. Trust me. It does. And that’s how it affects on so many levels. You think that it’s just a normal part of aging, or this or that, and it’s not. It’s totally a choice of yours, that you’re either going to address it or you’re not. Now I’m not saying you can change that job for sure, or all your life changes that you want to change. But you can try to change what you can, just one little thing, and then take care of yourself.

Your Work Should be Your Passion

That’s why we’re here. We’re going to help support you. Maybe you can’t change that job right now, but you’ve got to get rid of some of that stress that’s building up. We can help you with that. We can help you try to find different ways that you can reduce your stress — not just by having a massage or acupuncture or stuff that we do do — but we also have free community things for you to attend. We have mindful drumming, where you’re doing meditation and drumming to help you calm your mind … Help you turn your brain off. So you’re not thinking about all those things and you can just let it just rest for a moment.

We do Zen art, drawing … Sometimes we get all into doodling. That’s why doodling is so popular. When you’re doing something like that, you’re not thinking about your problems or trying to resolve them in some way. So we do things like that. Check our event calendar out. Stay in touch with us. You can see some of the things that you can attend. This is what we mean by, “Make wellness a way of life.” Incorporate those kinds of things. Find those things that work for you. You’re a plumber. What’s on your tool belt? You have your hammer; you have everything you need to get through life. We go to the job of life, and we don’t have a tool belt. Then we say, “What happened? Why is this not working?”

If it’s not working, it’s not working. You don’t have the right tools. We’ve got to get you the right tools, and that’s another thing that we’re really passionate about here … Because every single one of us is passionate about helping you find those tools. It will make a difference in your life.